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HELIUM is proud to have concluded the year 2007 at its most
popular venue. We worked very hard this year and toured non-stop. We owed it to ourselves to ring in 2008 in the company of
our friends and family. They, in turn, were glad to have us home for the special holiday. We played for a generous and happy crowd. Believe it or not,
barely any champagne was spilled and the treat of beef on a bun definitely did not go to waste. With magic flutes and party
hats in hand, as well as a fine acoustic Auld Lang Syne, the countdown to 2008 was truly delightful and heart warming
to all. We thank our buddy Johnny Sly for strumming that acoustic with class. Love ya man! This party would not have been such a success without the coordination
and cooperation of our colleagues Drew Dobson, Adam G., Christie, Paul, KJ Roundcat and Collie. A true professional bunch!
Their welcome is always sincere.
Pictures were taken by many of our friends and we’d like
to thank Marty, André, Véronique L., Paul Lauzon and Johnny for their contribution. We are still screening for the best shots
to make the site. Some are still coming in, making it very difficult to choose. We continue to thank all patrons for the tremendous support
received every time. As entertainers, we often feel like we’re the guests being entertained. Finnigan’s Pub
goers have the knack for doing that! We’re already anxious about next year’s bash. Please believe that HELIUM
will never let you down. Happy New Year everybody and all the best!!!
This was HELIUM’s first visit to The Phoenix.
Rumor has it that this venue is always bouncing. Indeed it was! The place was absolutely packed. The worst part is, it usually
gets even fuller. Perhaps the remaining of the bar regulars were busy getting ready for Xmas. We can’t wait for our
next invite to try and catch it at maximum capacity.
This gig, being our first at this location, gave us the chance
to test what kind of song selections we can get away with. Our choice of set for that particular evening proved itself to
be solid. Perhaps only a couple of tunes kept people guessing. All others kept people on their feet all night long. The stage
setting is ever so cozy and the sound projects with excellence.
We enjoyed working alongside with DJ Steve. His song rotation
was clearly well thought of and his choice of Xmas tunes near the end of the evening was perfect. We also tip our hats to
waitresses Brittany, Jessica, Shelly and Marcie for working so hard, as well as John and Chris with his team of fellow bouncers.
It was a pleasure to celebrate an early Xmas party with such a great bunch of people. We truly hope to make The Phoenix one of our best new
2008 venues. We are awaiting confirmation for additional dates real soon. Be sure to come along when we do. Until then…take
care!
We expected this gig to be a quiet one figuring that everyone
would be too busy wrapping up their Xmas shopping. To our surprise, it was fairly busy! A couple of our friends from Ottawa
joined us looking for an early Xmas celebration of their own. So…that’s what we did. Santa hats in hand and all…Hugs
to Johnny and Joanne for coming along.
There were many young rockers in the house who had themselves
a ball. We received a lot of thumbs up from one group in particular who thought they’d stump us by requesting some Offspring.
We delivered! They all went nuts on Crazy Train upon conclusion of the evening as well. It was an awesome night!
Thanks to the wonderful people of Shawville for a great time
and for showing some Xmas cheer. Kudos to the staff who kept up with the action: Amanda, Kathy, Lisa and George. We will see
you again in late February. Until then!
C’est le temps de l’année pour les « partys »
de Noël. L’organisation et le déroulement du party des employés du programme canadien de prêts aux étudiants fût un
grand succès. HELIUM était honoré d’être en charge du spectacle et d’être inclut au grand lunch, aux tirages et
d’avoir reçu des petits cadeaux complémentaires. Le lunch était fourni par le service de pourvoirie/ resto Lindocile.
Tout était absolument délicieux et très bien coordonné. On a même sucré nos becs avec de merveilleux petits désserts.
Excellente sélection de nourriture ! After a few draws and after everyone ate to their satisfaction,
we were ready to take the scene. Mr. Sean Jones initiated the music with a few Christmas songs armed with only his acoustic
guitar. His number was terrific and appreciated by all. The resonance in the St. Joseph Church basement truly is fantastic.
HELIUM kept the guests entertained with classic favorites and insisted on keeping them up on their toes. We were really impressed
with the crazy synchronized dancing we witnessed…Team spirit like we’ve never seen before. You can bet that the
Canadian Student Loans Program employees deserved this Xmas party and really took it seriously to unwind. On aimerait dire merci à notre ami, M. Robert Daniel, pour
avoir partagé sa grosse voix avec nous sur scène avec ses Calines de Blues et son Deep Purple. Le gars ne lâche
pas à nous surprendre. Finalement, un dernier gros merci à tous les organisateurs de cet événement pour un très bel après-midi.
Ca nous ferait un grand plaisir d’y retourner si le besoin se présente de nouveau. On souhaite un Joyeux Noël et Bonne Année à tous ! « Rock Style » ! Prenez
soin. PHATTY KATS - Cornwall - December 7-8, 2007 A long awaited return to the Phatty Kats it was. We had a ball, as we expected, with our pals from Cornwall. The regulars continue to cheers us on and we continue
having good times with fantastic people. HELIUM got to work alongside with DJ Hightower, Rob Rusaw, Rick Emond and Johnny
Sly all weekend. The cooperation among us truly added a certain "edge" to the group dynamic. Guests and patrons were on their toes and hoppin’ non-stop.
It was really nice to see! CWA Wrestling was also active in town on the Friday evening. We were fortunate enough to
welcome some its goers after the main event. Each had enough stamina left for one last round with HELIUM. A couple of us grabbed
some posters as souvenirs.
Unfortunately we missed our regular staff buddies: Denis, Lisa,
Kenny and Kevin. They’re all out together in the Dominican Republic having their buns shined on! Lucky sons*!
We’ll have to catch them on the rebound and demand on seeing some pictures.
Flo gave away 2 pairs of drum sticks to 2 devoted fans. The
encouragement and compliments we received during the weekend was simply incredible. It’s a great feeling indeed!
We thank barmaids Josée and Kerri for keeping up with our thirst,
lovely Christine for demanding an encore performance of our Evanescence cover, Denis, Tom, Clark, Crystal, folks from
the Corner Pub, the native fellow who insisted on getting us a round of shots, and many others whom we got to converse
with. Season’s Greetings to all and we hope to see the Cornwall
gang real soon in the New Year. Cheers!
Our first visit to the El Rangio was very pleasant.
The set-up is pretty cool with the mirrors and all. It definitely adds some glamour and pizzazz to the stage. The owner, Peter,
welcomed us with open arms and demonstrated such enthusiasm towards our music. We got a kick out of the wicked light show
he provided, as well as his DJ skills in between sets. He’s a great little dancer too! Cheers buddy! Your lovely bartender,
April is also very courteous. We appreciate great service.
We met some very nice people and fulfilled many song requests
throughout the evening. They love country music out there…so we made it a point to keep our selections on that borderline.
Fan favorites like Mustang Sally, Old Time Rock n’ Roll, Mellencamp’s, etc. kept us
alive no questions asked. We even got away with a French tune requested by Nicole. Some of our "loyals" from Smiths Falls drove out for a peek.
What a surprise! Huge thanks to Thomas, Brenda and Christel for traveling out to party with us. Christel brought her camera
along and we appreciate the souvenirs she captured. Some are sampled on this page.
HELIUM also enjoyed catching up with good buddies Ben, Bam
Bam and Richard (Wabbit), Marty, Ken & Nancy, Jo, etc. They can all be a rowdy bunch once alcohol fueled! Ha ha. We also
send our hugs and salutes to lovely Melody of the Black Cherry Band for stepping out into her backyard to see us perform.
Thanks girl, your encouragement is cherished. Some more thanks go out to Hélène, who interrupted her suitcase packing for
her trip to Puerto Vallarta in the morning. She insisted on getting one more HELIUM fix before she leaves. Hope she
has a safe and fabulous trip. Bring back souvenirs will ya?! HELIUM will be rescheduled to the El Rangio in the New
Year. It is worth the trip, so come back in great numbers. Thanks gang!
HELIUM took it nice and easy this weekend for our return to
the Penalty Shotz. Two members are still dealing with illness. This damn flu bug this year is quite stubborn and refuses
to leave. It seems that way for other people we know too! Luckily we had Dr. Paul and Joanne, as well as Nurse Megan on hand
for quick remedies. Them Cherry Whiskey and Fireball shots sure took care of those feverish "malaises". Bob ensured on bringing the mandolin along for this show as
he would have been slapped on the wrist if he had forgotten it. Acoustic arrangements are always appreciated in Cardinal as
we’ve learned over the years. The owner insists every time! Everyone had a blast and we’re very content with the
outcome of the evening.
Many thanks to all of those who attended despite having
Bon Jovi playing some kilometers away. LOL! We are coming back to The Shotz in late January. It will be HELIUM’s
first 2008 gig. Don’t miss it gang!
HELIUM had no objections on coming back to Finnigan’s
Pub so soon. It had only been 2 weeks since our last visit. For unfortunate reasons, another band had to cancel, leaving
the gig open to us. No problem at all. Two members still struggled with bad colds, yet no one could
tell. Although we’re sure they both craved their pillows, we’re proud to say that they survived a good musical
weekend nevertheless. We wanna thank all them regulars for another fun rockin’
time. Some shout outs and thanks to: Rob Niman of Solar Architect, Marty, Jesse, Stéphane, Joanne, Joelle, Mike, Tina,
Mario, Annick, Cassidy, Joan, Amanda, Steve, Francine, pretty blonde lady, Steve A. and friend, rowdy loud dude, as well as
bar staff Jay, Nadine, Paul, Tom the KJ and Mr. Doorman for another pleasant evening together and for remaining the most focused
audience in the house.
HELIUM is anxious in returning to Finnigan’s
Pub for this upcoming New Year’s Eve Party. Invites go out to all. Tickets will be available in mid-December. Expect food, champagne, karaoke, dancing,
party favors and, of course, another grand ol’ time with yours truly. We hope to see you there. Take care.
This was our first visit back to The Atlantic since
July. It was nice to be reacquainted with our friends of Alexandria. Cold and flu season hit one of the band members, but
rest assure, this didn’t affect the delivery of another great show.
Our good friends Mike and Tina stopped by to say hello on another
one of their drives. Distance is no issue for them as they are true HELIUM loyals! Thanks for allowing Brigitte to browse
through your medicine cabinet and for feeding J.P. them Coors’. Chloe, Dayna, Julie and Joanne filled the dance
floor very nicely and went a little nuts during Crazy Bitch. They sure asked for it! LOL It was our pleasure. We also
felt it necessary to dedicate a French favorite to our buddies Jimmy and France. We know how they appreciate our rendition
of Jean Batailleur. We just couldn’t let them down.
HELIUM salutes The Atlantic staff: Bridget, Richard,
Josée and Jeff, the doorman. Thanks for another awesome greeting and service. Hope it wasn’t too loud and we look forward
to another invite soon. Don’t make us wait too long this time! Until next time.
HELIUM felt proud to initiate the weekend long Halloween celebration
at Huxley’s. Although the actual costume party was on schedule for Saturday only, some guests eagerly wore their
masks on the Friday. So…we all got a sneak peek on what to expect.
"Happy Halloween" is all we have to say!!! HELIUM had
their fun dressing up and were really impressed with all the original costumes and disguises roaming around. Lots of fun and
laughs were shared. Of course, prizes were awarded to the best male and female costumes in the house. Congratulations to the
lovely Pixie Lady and to Mr. Pervert Man for claiming those prizes. Pictures have been posted below. More pics
of other contestants are available to view in our Photo Album section.
HELIUM performed for a generous crowd on both nights. We wanna
thank our good friends Zabidou, Donna, Hélène and Joanne for taking the time to take some photo shots without being distracted
by all the action. At one point, no one knew where to turn their heads as there was too much to look at. We also couldn’t
help but chuckle when Bob The Reaper had
his turn to sing. All you could see was a black hood. It kept people guessing where the baritone voice was coming from. LOL!
Brigitte became another pirate’s wench for a short while, Flo insisted on having a classic Kiss makeover and…J.P…well…we’re
still not sure what his intention was. Some kind of Beach Bum/Habs fan. Perhaps it was to provoke a bit of controversy on
obvious Senators turf. At least his t-shirt reflected on the outcome of that night’s Montréal Canadians game
as they were victorious!
Huxley’s staff kept up with the action as well. April made a beautiful Pocahontas and we still agree she makes
the best Caesars ever. Tina, unfortunately, missed out on this event, although she was present on the Friday. It’s too
bad, ‘cause we were all looking forward on seeing her costume idea. Cheers to you regardless, Tina! Mitch and both bouncers
were courteous enough to help us haul our gear up and down the stairs. How we appreciate that!
Yep…good times altogether. HELIUM won’t forget
Halloween 2007. It will be kept precious in HELIUM archives. Until next time folks!
What better way to end our weekend than with our friends of
Finnigan’s Pub. We were very content to set up on the ground floor this time. It’s such a relief not to
use those stairs anymore. The room filled up pretty nice and party glow was everywhere in sight. Many came out to celebrate the pub owner’s birthday.
Happy B-Day to Drew once again. We’re glad he partied with us and the rest of the gang, and we’re also glad that
he was still standing at the end of the night. Lol What a guy!
HELIUM allowed themselves to deliver an aggressive set on this
night, as it’s no secret how these patrons enjoy their hard rock. We became louder and louder towards the end of the
night…No rest for the wicked! Just when we thought we were through, the people kept screaming for more. Unfortunately,
we don’t make the rules. The pub has to close at some point!
You can bet everyone had a blast. HELIUM sends their salutations
to the following people. Brace yourselves, there are many: France and Mel, Nathalie, Marty, Jesse and Sarah, Kevin and Caroline,
Ken and Anne-Marie, Jerry and Bev, Kevin Pinks of Fanatical Jack with wife Tammy, Dwayne the Dweener and girlfriend,
Paulette and hubby, Gord and Melissa, Sue L. and friend, Annick, Amanda, Liz, Marc Roundcat, Sonny and the girls, Newfie Glen,
Patti and friends, Adam L., Serge P., Bobby, Chantal, Tara, Mandee…and sooo many others. Kudos to all of those who found
the space to dance. You all looked so good shakin’ your stuff.
The staff did a good job as usual and we must thank them as
well: Jay, lovely waitress (we didn’t get her name), Paul and Tony. HELIUM enjoys working with you and will continue
to do so. It’s a date for New Year’s Eve! Hope to bring in the year with the entire crew once again. Take
care loves.
The road trip up to Shawville is quite the adventure. A topsy
curvy road pretty much all the way. There was also a lot of wildlife activity out on this night. Cute raccoons, deer, porcupine
and even skunks roamed around on almost every corner. It’s always pretty cool to spot them every now and then. We arrived to Atkinson’s in one piece. This was our second
visit. Now that we knew we could get away with stuff like Ozzy Osbourne from our previous visit, we felt a lot more
comfortable with the rest of our set. It can become intimidating at times, especially if you’re mostly dealing with
country music fans. Our selections fit the bill very well after all…all was good. We even fulfilled a number of song
requests for Britney, Cathy and Ashley.
HELIUM wants to thank the staff: Amanda, Kathy, Lisa and Mr.
"Hunter" Bouncer. (Congrats on the moose catch) Thanks for another pleasant evening. We hope to return soon. "Til then.
HELIUM was very happy to party with their friends from Cardinal
again this past Saturday. We always have a great time when we visit. We made ourselves some unusual fun this time around when
it came down to our set list. Instead of planning the sequence of songs, we drew each song from out of a hat. No questions
asked. Quite a twisted change…lots of fun! Now that hockey is back, you can bet that the clientele warms
up to the music a lot faster. Dancing was no issue for the folks we had present among us. They simply didn’t stop! Doug
and Pat from Vancouver, as well as their friends were truly the rowdiest bunch in the house. They added a great positive edge
to this Saturday night party and we were pleasured to meet and chat with them. Hope they decide to visit again in the near
future. Our buddy Steve was ecstatic to come up and sing Copperhead
Road with us on stage. He had the perfect twang to fit the song and we’re proud of the job he did. Paul, the owner,
had his fix of stage spotlight again! He likes to act either as an air guitar player or as a back-up vocalist. A very versatile
and multitasking individual indeed! We always look forward to see what he’ll do next. Unfortunately, we do not have
any photos to show him off this time. HELIUM thanks the many regulars who continue patting us on
the back: Joanne, Audrey, Smiley Rob, Bear, Mary Loo, etc. Where was Bernie this weekend btw?!? One more shout out to bartender
Sheena, whom we hadn’t met yet. Thanks for your service girl. Your B-52’s were perfect. We will be going back to the Shotz in mid November.
Why not take a little drive out and come party with us HELIUM style. Hope to see ya there folks!
Our weekend in Renfrew was a blast. We met some more "crazies"
and were reacquainted with familiar faces from our previous visit. HELIUM was pleased to hear how our come-back was so long
awaited. You can bet that our crowd did not disappoint us.
Things kicked up pretty nice on the Friday evening, but Saturday
is when everybody shone. We applaud sweet Tabatha for a good vocal job on Summer of ’69 and for her non-stop
dancing. Man, look at her go! We were also fortunate enough to celebrate 2 birthdays. Hoping they had a good one, Happy B-Day
to Gord and Jeff once again.
Some great chats were also shared with visitors Brian and Brennon
from Sudbury, as well as Rick from Texas. Good friends Hélène, Jo and Jo-Jo dropped by from Ottawa to support us as well as
our good buddy Joel from the band Money Shot along with his wife Regina. What good sports! Please believe that your
presence was felt and very much appreciated! HELIUM would like to send some more shout outs to Furdog, Barclay,
Todd, Amy, long black skirt lady, all members of the Half Cutt band and many others for spending an awesome weekend
with us. Kudos to the Huxley’s staff: Shannon, Crystal, Mitch, Shauna, Dana, James, André, Rob and
lovely Tina. They totally treat us very well and we enjoy their company.
HELIUM is hosting the Huxley’s Halloween Party
this 26th and 27th of October. We plan on dressing up… Do not miss out on another wicked time!
Le dernier festival de l’année 2007 au village O’Shack
fut un grand succès pour tous. HELIUM a animé une foule approximative de 600 personnes. Les gens se sont mis dans l’esprit
de célébrer un dernier « party » en plein air avant la conclusion de l’été. C’était toute une fureur !
Ceux qui ne connaissent pas l’experience du O’Shack,
manquent quelque chose d’original. On se croit dans le milieu d’une vieille ville « western » avec un
entourage de motos et de cuir plutôt que de chevaux et de cow-boys. Le village offre toutes les nécessités et croyez que chaque
« shack » a sa propre spécialité. C’est toute une aventure !
Les visiteurs du O’Shack tiennent le festival
bien à coeur. La participation, venant de leur part, est tout à fait exceptionnelle. HELIUM ne pouvait s’empêcher de
se nourrir sur cette énergie et s’est assuré de combler les besoins « rock » ! Ca danse, ça chante, ça
boit, ça trippe...et ça se garde au chaud près du gros feu. Un fun inoubliable ! HELIUM aimerait remercier Fern et Lisa en particulier, une
deuxieme fois, pour notre invitation. Leur ouvrage et réalisation à l’expérience O’Shack est admiré et
encouragé par tous. Ne lâchez pas et prenez grand soin de vous.
Nous tenons à remercier Johnny Sly, Véronique Larose
et Paul Lauzon pour leurs prises de photos. Ils ont tous été pas mal occupés ! Nos prises préférées seront affichées
au site bientôt. Finalement, on aimerait remercier davantage tous nos ami(es) qui se sont présentés...la liste est trop nombreuse,
et puis à tous ceux et celles qui ont interagit et qui se sont introduit à nous. On s’est
fait du fun en tabar slash !!! A la prochaine gang !
If there is an Ottawa outskirt where we’ve established
a great following in the last 3 years, it’s definitely in Smiths Falls. The friends we’ve made out there are truly
our most loyal. We all had a fabulous Friday evening catching up with the gang and performing a series of their classic favorites. The only downer of the evening, really, was the rain downpour
we endured while packing up at the end of the night. Not exactly what you want after a busy show! At least we got to mingle
with our friends a little longer. HELIUM would like to say thank you to Brenda, Karen and Dean,
Sonja, Christel, Nancy and Tom for their continuous rev and support towards the band, Cynthia V. and Greg for having their
cameras in hand for some photo shots, Mike and Tina for driving up from Ottawa to join us (again), Dionisia and Steph for
looking pretty and being the cool girls that they are, Ed and Nadia, Abib, Rebecca and Charles for rocking hard as expected.
We truly owed it to every single one of them to make their evening a special one. Another great time!
A final shout out to Scott and Kristen, the hard working staff.
It was really nice seeing you again and we await our next visit. See you soon.
After one year, HELIUM was able to fit in JR’s Pub
to its busy schedule. The pub was exactly as we remembered it…quiet and intimate. A quieter night was well-deserved
after all of the private parties we’ve performed over the summer. Being able to play under tame circumstances felt good
for a change.
We each had a small group of friends present among us. We found it cool that they all shared the same tables even though some were strangers to each other. Everyone mingled in pleasant harmony. We wanna say hello and thanks to Wayne and Gaye who continue showing us their support and loyalty (they follow us everywhere), Jason and Lesa for their awesome surprise visit and for volunteering to take some pics, Flo’s buddy Dwight, Marty and Fiona for challenging us with a variety of song requests and finally, all the patrons and the metal head lover by the pool table who showed good appreciation in having us back. A final thank you to the staff: Jeff, Darleen and
Stacey. It was a nice welcome back and trust that we enjoyed the pizza! Hope to see the gang again soon.
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Webmaster : Johnny Sly
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